Fannie Mae reported today that the Single-Family Serious Delinquency rate declined in March to 1.44%, down from 1.52% in February. The serious delinquency rate is down from 1.78% in March 2015.

This is the lowest rate since June 2008.

The Fannie Mae serious delinquency rate peaked in February 2010 at 5.59%.

Note: These are mortgage loans that are “three monthly payments or more past due or in foreclosure”.

Note: Freddie Mac has not reported for March yet.

Click on graph for larger image

The Fannie Mae serious delinquency rate has only fallen 0.34 percentage points over the last year – the pace of improvement has slowed – and at that pace the serious delinquency rate will not be below 1% until 2017.

The “normal” serious delinquency rate is under 1%, so maybe Fannie Mae serious delinquencies will be close to normal some time in late 2017. This elevated delinquency rate is mostly related to older loans – the lenders are still working through the backlog.Calculated Risk